Crown Jewel Defense
Definition
A crown jewel defense is a tactic where a takeover target agrees to sell its most valuable assets, the crown jewels, to a third party, making the company less attractive to the hostile bidder. If the raider wants the company for a specific asset, the board moves that asset out of reach.
In practice
Revlon’s board tried a version of this against Ron Perelman, locking up key assets in favor of a friendlier buyer. The Delaware courts struck the lock-up down, and the case became the foundation of Revlon duties.